The Boy That Wasn't Who They Thought
by Kyria Thanatos
Summary: Harry was far from ordinary, much to his Aunt and Uncle's displeasure. This just means that they would do anything to rid themselves of this unwanted presence. This also means that they will unknowingly disrupt plans of a certain meddling, fool of a Headmaster. Pairings will be added much further on.
1. Prologue: When the Freak Appeared

Summary: _Harry was far from ordinary, much to his Aunt and Uncle's displeasure. This just means that they would do anything to rid themselves of this unwanted presence. This also means that they will unknowingly disrupt plans of a certain meddling, fool of a Headmaster. Dumping their nephew at an orphanage may just become both the best thing (from Harry's POV) and worst thing (from the British Wizarding World's POV) to happen! Watch out Hogwarts! A different Harry Potter is ready to stir up trouble!_

 **UPDATE 28/01 - Adding in dates and/or time of year. As the category suggests, this is a crossover between Avengers and Harry Potter, so I've shifted Harry's date of birth to coincide with technological advances in the 'Muggle' World. All will be explained further in the story.**

 **Prologue: When the Freak Appeared.**

 **November 2nd 1996**

Finding a baby on your doorstep,in the middle of winter is not anyone's cup of tea. Finding your baby nephew on your doorstep in the middle of winter was DEFINITELY not how Petunia Dursley wanted to greet the new day. What takes the cake is the fact that said nephew was not normal. In any sense of the word.

You see, Petunia has a sister named Lily. The apple of her parents eyes. A witch. A freak. So of course, if Lily were to procreate with THAT boy...John, Jerry...Jeffery, whatever his name is, then it stands to reason that any spawn they manage to pop out will be just like them; strange...abnormal. Wizard.

Looking down at the tightly wrapped bundle, Petunia notices an envelope addressed to herself and her husband which was written with awfully familiar handwriting.

Mr and Mrs V. Dursley,

4 Privet Drive

Little Whinging,

Surrey.

Ignoring the quietly slumbering child and bending down to pick up the letter, it was with shaking hands that Petunia Dursley read;

To Mr Vernon and Mrs Petunia Dursley;

It is with great regret that I must inform you of the passing of both James and Lily Potter at the hands of the Dark Lord Voldemort on the 31st October. Thankfully they are survived by their son, Harry James Potter. Please look after your nephew as he will become an integral player in the future of the wizarding world when he is older and it will be up to you to raise him until he is ready for Hogwarts. With him comes great protection for both Harry and yourselves, you just need to give him a home.

Regards

Albus Percival Wulfuric Brian Dumbledore

"Well, I suppose we should bring you inside; I'd hate to think what that man would do to us if you we let you die now" Sneering down at the now squirming child, Petunia bends over to scoop the child up in her arms, being careful not to touch too much of the boy.

As if she would be infected by his freakish-ness simply by her touch.

This was definitely not what she was expecting while going out to collect the milk bottles. Come to think of it; she forgot all about that milk...


	2. Chapter 1 : When Mr Dursley Overreacts

**UPDATE 28/01 - Adding in dates and/or time of year. As the category suggests, this is a crossover between Avengers and Harry Potter, so I've shifted Harry's date of birth to coincide with technological advances in the 'Muggle' World. All will be explained further in the story.**

 **Chapter 1: When Mr Dursley Overreacts to Dropped Eggs.**

 **August 20th 2000**

"BOY!"

Harry scampered out of his cupboard and into the kitchen at his Uncle's raging tone.

"Yes Uncle Vernon?" asked a timid Harry.

"Cook me some eggs, boy and don't you DARE burn them!"

"Yes Sir" replies Harry obediently.

* * *

 _Harry Potter is a small child. Much too small for a four-year old, which is probably attributed to the meagre helpings of food he's allowed to eat. The boy is small, with jet black hair that sticks up in every direction. Bright, emerald green eyes stand out against his pale thin face, framed by ugly, rounded glasses. His forehead is marred by a pink, lightning bolt shaped scar that runs from the hairline to just under his right eye which Petunia says had come from the "car-crash that killed your good-for-nothing drunk of a father and your bitch of a mother"._

* * *

Harry set out to complete his task which really, seems a bit much for a small boy such as he to handle. As the boy starts carefully cracking the eggs into the frying pan, he fails to notice his Uncle glaring at the back of his head.

* * *

 _Let it not be said that Vernon isn't dangerously obese...because he is. Vernon is a large man whose looks resembles a whale. He has small, beady eyes that had only ever been directed towards Harry with looks of hatred. On his head is a smattering of sandy blonde hair that was graying on the sides but also slowly receding to reveal a smooth bowling ball head. To Petunia, Vernon is her handsome husband that had swept her off her feet as a teenager and to her, he's perfect the way he is. In Dudley's eyes, at five years old, his dad was the best dad in the whole world and he wished to be just like him when he was older._

* * *

Once Harry was sure that the eggs were fried perfectly, he made his way to Vernon's plate to dish up his food.

"Hurry up, boy! What are you waiting for?!" roared Vernon, not caring that he sprayed spittle across the table and the boy.

It was the next few seconds that Harry later swore had played out in slow motion. As he went to scrape the eggs from the plate, it slipped off the spatula. Harry watched the fall with both apprehension and dread; this was not going to be good.

The eggs landed on the floor with a resounding 'splat'. Slowly lifting his head to face his Uncle, he was suddenly blindsided and he soon found himself on the floor next to the ruined eggs. It was then that he noticed the pain radiating across the left hand side of his face. Vernon had backhanded the boy and as Harry tried hard to stop the tears from falling, he slowly advanced on his nephew as Harry flinched and scurried backwards.

"You useless piece of shit! You can't do anything right!"

While perhaps he was overreacting, any excuse to beat on his nephew was 'ok' in his mind. Harry, meanwhile, was shaking wth fright and just knew that he was going to be hurt a lot worse by the end of the day.

"Listen here boy, and listen well. You are lucky I have to leave for work very soon, but mark my words, we will be having a little..chat when I get home." It was almost a whisper in which his words came out, but Harry, despite being so young, understood the underlying meaning behind them; he would be very lucky to even be conscious after their 'chat'.

 **BREAK**

* * *

 _Dudley. Vernon and Petunia's pride and joy. To them, you'd be hard-pressed to find any other child as perfect as he. No one could measure up to their little boy, especially not their freakish nephew. Dudley was a near carbon copy of his father; the same beady eyes, hair just as blonde. Nearly just as large too. To everyone else, he resembled a beach ball with hair._

* * *

While Petunia dropped Dudley off at preschool, little Harry was busy with the list of chores given to him by his Aunt. Petunia knew she wouldn't be gone long, so hesitantly left her nephew home alone; it's not as if the neighbors knew they housed another child and hoped that five minutes would not be enough for the freak to wreck havoc in her house. As she took the short drive home, she thought back to that dreadful day they brought Potter into her home.

To say that Vernon was displeased by the intrusion of her freaky nephew is a complete understatement. In his mind, he didn't think he should put up with the fact that this unwanted boy would be disrupting the lives of not only himself and his beautiful wife, but also their one-year-old son. Not only would he have to see that _thing_ everyday, but he'll have to feed him with the food he worked hard to put on the table, clothe him with his hard-earned money and watch as the boy tormented his handsome boy, Dudley.

When he had read the letter left by this..Doubledoor...Bumbledore person, he decided then and there that that boy could stay but under HIS conditions. They would let the boy live under their roof, but he will be fed the bare minimum and could have Dudley's old clothing. Once he was deemed old enough, he will then have to earn his stay here.

Those four years were a happy four years – well as happy as could be when one was housing a freak like Harry Potter.

 **BREAK**

Meanwhile, as Harry tackled the oven with a scrubbing brush and oven cleaner, he's also dreading the swiftly approaching evening. An evening where Uncle Vernon will walk through those doors, give his wife and son a peck on the cheek each and will proceed to observe his nephew as said nephew prepares their dinner. Hopefully with no mishaps like what happened earlier in the morning.

The day seems to fly by in an instant, almost as if it were excited for what was predicted to come. Suddenly, it's 5:30pm and Harry can hear the tires of Uncle's car as they roll into the driveway. He finishes setting the dining room table and quietly stands in the corner, hoping to blend in with the pale walls of the sitting room. The jingle of the house keys signified the arrival of his Uncle, Harry shudders with uncontrolled fear as the door opens to reveal him.

Vernon waddled through the opened door and greeted his wife and son with a cheerful "hello!" and moved to take his work things upstairs before getting himself ready and settled at the dinner table.

His gaze searched out the boy and found him trying to disappear into the wallpaper. Grinning slightly, he hypes himself up for a productive evening.

"Boy, you will serve dinner then wait until we are finished before we 'talk'" Vernon says gruffly.

"Yes sir" Harry replies meekly.

Once the food has been eaten and the dining table cleared, Petunia observes her husband and nephew as they leave the room towards the living room.

* * *

 _If one were to sit Petunia and Lily down, side-by-side, you would never guess that they were related let alone sisters. Where Lily had fire-red hair that fell in beautiful waves, Petunia had blonde hair that looked nothing like her sisters. Her face was long and narrow and her neck was nearly twice the average length; she resembled a horse-giraffe hybrid. Of course, Vernon thought the world of her and none could compare._

* * *

Vernon and Harry's 'chat' wasn't just a chat, but consisted of rather a lot of cursing and yelling on Vernon's part and silent tears on Harry's.

"Not only did you ruin MY breakfast, but you also didn't even finish your chores!" ranted Vernon.

"Do you not appreciate what we do for you boy? We let you stay in OUR house, eat OUR food and wear the clothes we have given you and you can't even help out around the house? Is that the thanks we get?!"

Little Harry curls up into a ball as his words rain down on him.

"Enough of this, boy, you must be punished. We cannot let you get away with this"

With that, Vernon pulls off his belt and loops it, ready bring it down hard on the boys back.

"Get up, GET UP"

Harry stumbles to his feet and turns to face the wall, already knowing what his Uncle wants him to do. Without warning, the first blow hit hard and Harry knows that this is just the first of many to come.

* * *

 **A/N I hope you're all still sticking with the story. The first few chapters are setting the scene so to speak so the story may be a little slow moving.**

 **Bye!**

 **Kyria**


	3. Chapter 2: When the Dursleys Had Enough

**Chapter 2: When The Dursleys Have Had Enough.**

When Harry came to, he discovered that at some point the previous night, Vernon had dragged him into his cupboard as he was now blearily staring at the underside of the stairs.

* * *

 _The cupboard under the stairs had served as Harry's bedroom from the age of three. If Vernon had had his way, the boy would have been chucked in there the moment he arrived on their doorstep. Petunia had reluctantly rebuffed that idea, not because she cared if the boy died, but was rather afraid of the consequences from the boy dying and having THAT man come after them for it. Up until he was three, Harry had slept on an old cot that was once Dudley's but had fallen apart. Once deemed old enough, he was moved into the tiny cupboard that was cleared of brooms, buckets and other cleaning paraphernalia to fit the ratty mattress from the cot._

 _His room was so small, the mattress could fit length-ways and had space for an extra twenty inches or so that would be handy for when he grows taller. Behind his head are some little shelves that Harry would proudly display the few toys that he could salvage from Dudley's pudgy, destructive hands. Dudley broke more toys than Harry could count! Harry wasn't alone in his room though. He often had little eight-legged visitors in the form of spiders that hung from their webs off the floorboards of the stairs above._

 _Oh how Harry wished he could have a proper bedroom._

* * *

Not knowing what the time was, Harry tried in vain to get some proper sleep as no doubt Aunty would have him up early to cook breakfast. Tears sprung from his eyes, Harry had no idea why his relatives hated him so. He remembers attempting to say 'love you mummy' when he learnt how to talk. He had hoped that she would coo at him just like she did with Dudley when he tried to say those words (Dudley with little success, it sounded more like 'ov oo mu-e'). Despite the horrid pronunciation, Aunty still praised and showered him with affection and pride. All Harry got was a swift thwack on the hand and was reprimanded none to lightly.

"Don't call me mummy, freak! I AM NOT YOUR MUM"

Harry never attempted to call her anything other than 'Aunt Petunia' or 'ma'am' after that. Vernon was either 'Uncle Vernon' or 'sir'.

* * *

 **FLASHBACK**

 **JULY 31st 1999**

Harry is three years old. He knows this because Uncle Vernon has finally deemed it necessary for him to know his own date of birth. But instead of receiving any form of love or presents...

"Boy, you are now three years old today and we have decided you will now be moved int the room under the stairs. This is now where you will sleep and you will stay in there until we let you out each day. You will also now start pulling your weight around here. We will give you a list of chores you must finish by the end of the day, got it?"

Not waiting for an answer he grins,

"Happy Birthday, freak" grins Vernon maniacally.

At this point in his life, Harry has already realised that he's much more advanced than cousin Dudley. Aunt would read books to Dudley every night, however the boy had no interest in what his mother was doing so the books ended up abandoned most nights. Harry would sneak these books away when Petunia wasn't looking and had taught himself how to read by sounding out each letter, each word until he thought he had it right. Harry liked to think of himself as smart. He learned how to walk, talk and use the potty way before Dudley reached those milestones. Of course, instead of being praised for it like he'd hoped, Harry was punished instead and sent to the corner for timeout.

 **END FLASHBACK**

As time wore on, he soon realised that no matter what he did, no matter how hard he tried or no matter how intelligent he was, Harry would never receive any type of love from his relatives. It made him sad at first, to realise that he was unloved and definitely unwanted, but later he resolved to shut himself off from these emotions and feelings as in the end, it would only to end in heartbreak.

* * *

Harry may only be four, however he was intelligent enough to scope out his injuries and from the look of it, he may have escaped with fewer hurts this time around. The last thing he remembered was Vernon bringing down his belt on his back, leaving angry, red welts. A couple hits broke the skin and Harry knew it would scar later on. They would soon join the faint scars from punishments previously gone by. Harry knew he had been lucky, Vernon never usually stop at whipping and often resorted to using fists and feet to break a few bones.

* * *

 _Harry was a fast healer, but he had no idea why. One night he would go to bed with purple bruises and that would start turning yellow by the next morning. Broken bones would oft heal in a few days, and and broken skin would close up within 48 hours. Harry had no idea how this would happen. Vernon was none too happy when he would not see his handiwork for long but soon realised that he could punish the boy much more frequently, he didn't want to kill the boy as no doubt he would if he did while the boy was still injured._

* * *

 **TIME SKIP**

 **JULY 31st 2001**

It's his birthday again and he just turned five. However, this year had been different. Harry hadn't been woken up early to cook breakfast. Harry was thus very wary. When he stumbled out to the kitchen, it was to find that breakfast had already been made and there seemed to be four plates of food on the dining table rather than three.

"Harry! Come join us for breakfast, after all it's not every day one becomes five years old eh boy?"

Something didn't seem right to Harry, and who could blame him? Vernon had been positively pleased to see Harry this morning. Harry was not naive enough to fall completely for his act. Something else must be going on.

"Yes Uncle Vernon" replied Harry timidly as he sat down in the chair set out for him.

As he ate, he could feel his Aunts and Uncles eyes on him and he realized he was so consumed in his food, that he had missed what they were saying.

"- going on a trip today Harry, and we felt as you're now five, we would take you with us" said Petunia.

Harry didn't know what to say as it didn't make sense. What did age have to do with anything? So he just nodded in reply.

Soon, the family of four were packed into Vernon's car and were soon travelling to their destination.

The trip took at least an hour, and while Harry was enjoying watching the scenery pas by his window, he still had to put up with Dudley, who was sitting in the booster seat next to him trying to throw a shoe at Harry's head. Harry stayed silent as he knew his relatives wouldn't punish Dudley for his misdeeds.

When the car slowed to a stop, Vernon told him to get out of the car. Harry was too busy staring at his surroundings that he failed to notice that Vernon had dropped a small bag with an envelope tied tot he straps. When he finally realized he heard a car engine that sounded too close to be from a car that wasn't theirs, he turned in time to see his 'family' zoom off into the distance. Harry's heart dropped when his brain finally caught up with what he was seeing and he attempted to run after their car but realized it was futile to try and catch up. He refused to let the tears fall that he knew were forming in his eyes.

He resolved then that he could never trust anyone but himself, and he closed his feelings off once again.

Walking back to the bag his Uncle left with him, Harry finally looked up at the iron-wrought gates to read the sign hanging above.

 _ **ST JAMES ORPHANAGE FOR LOST BOYS**_

* * *

 **A/N Updates will be sporadic but I will try to update at least once a week. I have the entire plot set out but I need to turn it into a decent story.**

 **Also, if you were looking for a fic that didn't have Harry unrealistically smart or powerful, then you're reading the wrong one. His intelligence and power though will play a huge part in the plot, so HOPEFULLY, it will make sense and not just OP for the sake of it.**

 **Ta!**


End file.
